Night Light
by HarlowR
Summary: For a daughter of the Underworld, Hazel was remarkably uncomfortable in the dark.


**Disclaimer:** I don't own _Percy Jackson_, its concepts, or its characters. No money is being made out of this.

* * *

Choosing to stay at Camp Half-Blood instead of going back to Camp Jupiter after the war against Gaea had provided Hazel with a few setbacks, but she figured as long as the good outweighed the bad, she was fine.

She just wasn't always one hundred percent sure it did.

Nighttime was the worst. She'd gotten used to sleeping in a barrack with a bunch of people; having her father's creepy cabin all to herself tended towards the unpleasant – and it seemed like pretty poor organizational decision-making, if she did say so herself. The nightmares, of course, didn't help.

"Where did you get _that_?" Piper had asked her, standing in the doorway as Hazel screwed the yellow light bulb into the base of her new nightlight.

"I asked Chiron," she'd said. "He was pretty understanding."

It wasn't powerful; its ring of light reached only a few feet beyond her bunk. But it was enough to comfort her as she lay awake after a particularly bad dream – about the Underworld, this time, its faded colors catching at her skin and draining the life out of her.

Then, the air seemed to shimmer at the corner of her eye, and her hand snaked toward the dagger under her pillow, heart leaping to her throat. Her fingers relaxed as her brother's form emerged from the shadows.

"Hey, stranger," she said. He frowned at her, then stepped closer and bent down to kiss the top of her head.

"What are you doing up?" he asked, sitting at the foot of her bed.

"Bad dream. You've been gone a while," she pointed out.

"Have I?"

"Three weeks."

"Sorry. Lost track of time down there."

She knew how it was. "I worry when you're gone so long," she said anyway.

"I know. I'm sorry."

Hazel hesitated. "How's Dad?" she finally asked.

"Fine, I guess. Stressed as usual. Persephone's up here so that always leaves him in a sour mood." He paused. "He mentioned you a couple of times."

"He did? What did he say?"

"He just asked me if you were adjusting to living here."

"Oh."

"I said I'd come see," he added with a small smile.

Hazel smiled back. "You'd never actually come _into_ the cabin before, had you?"

"Well, there are shadows now," he explained, gesturing around them. It didn't escape her that he evaded the actual question. "This place's depressing," he added with a scowl.

"I guess they wanted to go with the whole Underworld theme."

"I'm sure Dad appreciates it," he commented drily. Hazel chuckled. Nico's gaze dropped to the floor and he cleared his throat. "He also said he was proud of how you fought in the war, especially how you learned to use your powers. If I didn't know any better though, I'd say he seemed almost… wistful."

Hazel was quiet for a moment. "I was angry at him," she confessed. "It's stupid, I know. You can't expect a god to be like a normal parent."

"It's not stupid," Nico said, fingering the edge of her blanket. "But it is kind of pointless. They can't be what we need – we just have to make do with whatever they give us."

Oddly enough, his bluntness comforted her. Nico didn't lie to her – but he was never unkind. "I know," she said. "I just…I guess seeing his wedding ring triggered something in me. It was tough back then, you know, just my mother and me. People were cruel."

"Yeah, I can imagine."

Hazel wondered what it might have been like for _his_ mother, his and Bianca's – she was alone too, with two kids, and only a few years after Hazel's time. Then again, maybe it was different in Italy, and for a white woman. There was a lot about Nico she didn't know – and a lot she wasn't ready to ask. Instead, she said: "Why do you think he cheats? If he loves Persephone so much…"

Nico looked up, eyebrows raised. "I don't know. That's just the way they are, I guess. They all do it."

"Hera doesn't. Or Persephone, as far as I know." Nico didn't reply. "It's just upsetting," she sighed, not knowing what else to say.

"Yeah, I guess so," he said after a while. He looked lost in thought for a moment, before turning his gaze toward her. "So, are you? Adjusting, I mean?"

"I think so. During the day it's usually fine; I have everyone's company and there's a lot to keep me busy."

"But?" he prompted, when she didn't continue.

"But…it's weird being all alone here, like I said. And…there's Frank."

"Right."

She'd complained to him before about how tough things became with Frank when she'd decided to stay at Camp Half-Blood. Sure, the two camps were friendly now – or at least they knew about and didn't actively try to kill each other (most of the time), but they were still on opposite sides of the country, plus Frank was praetor now. As much as she liked him, there were many things straining their relationship and she wasn't sure what to do about it. She'd been avoiding thinking about it. "I haven't talked to him in a while."

"Maybe it's for the best," Nico said. She gave him a reproachful look. "You know how I feel about it," he added.

"I thought you liked Frank!"

"I did. I mean, he's fine, whatever. But I'm just saying. You don't have to have the relationship of your life at thirteen. Maybe it's for the best."

"You talk like you're so much older than me!"

"Yeah; well, do you see me in a relationship?" She scowled, but knew better than to make a comment abut _that_. "He's too old for you, anyway. It's true," he added when her scowl deepened. "I just think you should focus on your training, and adjusting to being here with your friends. And to, you know, the…times."

"Look who's talking," she teased, but her anger was all but gone.

"At least I know how to use an iPad." She was embarrassed to ask him what that was; Piper had shown her a bunch of electronic gadgets that all started with "i-", but Hazel couldn't tell which was which or what they were for if her life depended on it.

"They're your friends too, you know," she said quietly after a moment.

Nico seemed to take it as his cue to leave. "Yeah," he said, standing, "sure."

"Wait!" she called, grabbing his wrist. "Don't go. I won't be able to fall back asleep if I have to stay here all alone." She gave him her best puppy eyes. "It's your cabin, too."

He sighed, shooting her a very half-hearted glare. "Fine." Then his eyes softened, and he almost smiled as he tucked a strand of her curly hair behind her ear. "Let's not make this a habit," he said, walking over to the nearest bunk.

"Of course not," she replied, fully intending to make it into a habit if she could. If Nico at least stayed with her in the cabin sometimes, it would significantly improve her life at Camp Half-Blood. "Just this once." She heard him snort. "But do you promise to stay the whole night?"

"Yeah," he said.

She reached over to turn off the nightlight. "Good night, Nico."

"Good night."


End file.
